


The Last Gift

by tess1978



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 3
Genre: Angst, Children In Danger, Danger, Escape, Gen, Heavy Angst, Image contest December entry, Parent-Child Relationship, implied suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-25
Updated: 2016-11-25
Packaged: 2018-09-02 05:03:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8652067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tess1978/pseuds/tess1978
Summary: Vinnie, a slave in Paradise Falls, doesn't want her children to grow up as slaves, so she makes her escape. This is the story of their harrowing journey through the Capital Wasteland.
December entry for Likegoodangels image prompt.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [likegoodangels](https://archiveofourown.org/users/likegoodangels/gifts).



Vinnie looked down at the two boxes of Fancy Lads Snack Cakes in her pack, and then looked over at Racer and Petal. They were huddled together under the single blanket, as close as possible to the small fire Vinnie had built to warm the small washroom just inside the Farragut metro station where they had been hiding for two weeks.

The place was relatively safe, if chilly. It was December, Vinnie thought. She had learned the months as a child and sometimes knew what month it was. She could remember a home, a farm, with some brahmin and her mother and father, before the raiders had come and killed her parents and taken her to Paradise Falls.

She had lived there for close to twenty years by her reckoning, until her collar shorted out and she managed to escape with her two children.

She wouldn’t have made it if not for the distraction caused by that vault dweller. Vinnie had heard about him on the radio. Three Dog had been talking about him looking for his dad or something. Vinnie didn’t really care about some kid who grew up safe in a vault. But when the skinny boy had showed up and made a ruckus about some kids that the slavers had caught, Vinnie had taken the opportunity and removed the broken collar, collected her own two kids and a sack with a few items and made a run for it.

They had headed east first, walking at night and sleeping in the day. She had heard of a place called the Temple of the Union where escaped slaves could go for help. But when they had arrived, already out of food, the place was empty. Vinnie had panicked for a few minutes, sinking to the ground and crying, until Petal came over to her and sat next to her, followed shortly by Racer. 

She had wrapped her arms around them and held them close, freshly determined to find a place where they could all be safe. 

She had scavenged the place before they left, determining that the previous occupants had left in a hurry. There was a heavy pipe, which she had decided to keep as a weapon. One can of pork-n-beans which she’d given to the children to share, and the two boxes of snack cakes. 

She’d meant to give the treats to the children as well, but in a burst of optimism had decided instead to wait until they arrived at their new home, wherever that may be. 

The Temple had been the third day after the escape, and on the fourth they’d headed south. Vinnie had heard of a city in a ship, which she’d thought might be a good place to try and live. They had holed up to sleep in a sewage pipe under a radio tower where Vinnie found some more food as well as what seemed to be purified water, an even rarer treat. She had been filling up the same bottle from melted snow, but she could already tell the kids were getting ill from it. 

Four more days found them hiding under some rubble at the ruins of downtown DC, and Vinnie was stumped. The children were exhausted, Racer was showing signs of radiation poisoning, and Vinnie couldn’t see how they would be able to get past the rubble that blocked the way. To make matters worse, she could hear the growling of super mutants talking nearby. They were not safe here. 

She’d pulled the children along as quickly and quietly as she could. It had been difficult. Petal had helped. She understood, being nine, that the world was dangerous and that in order to survive, you must obey your mother immediately. But Racer was only six, tired and sick, and he could sometimes be stubborn and loud, and she couldn’t risk him giving away their location.

They had managed to find the entrance to Farragut Station, and Vinnie had made them wait in the gated entry while she explored ahead. She was relieved to find nothing but a half-putrid corpse of a mole rat, next to a broken Protectron that was still sparking and flaring. She listened for a moment for any further signs of danger, and hearing nothing, crept forward. 

When she found the bathroom, she thanked whatever angel was watching over them. The sink worked, the toilet flushed, and there was a sturdy mop which, when jammed in the door handle, barred it from being opened from the outside. 

It wasn’t a long term solution, but it was at least somewhere to stay while she figured out a way past the rubble of the city.

They had stayed there a week, occasionally building up the fire to cook, the door propped open to let the smoke out, but usually letting it smoulder. The children had stayed in the room with the door barred while she searched the tunnels nearby, hauling back a bench for fuel, then another, then venturing further into the tunnels in search of supplies.

She had found no more food, but she’d found a 32 pistol and, frustratingly, 10mm ammo. The pistol had one round in it, so she pocketed the weapon, just in case. She found a first aid kit with two doses of radaway but nothing else. 

That night, she’d given the last of the food to the kids, along with the radaway. She’d gone to sleep hungry, holding them in her arms.

***

It was morning now, and there was no breakfast. Racer and Petal huddled under the blanket and Vinnie looked at the two packs of snack cakes in her bag. _Tonight,_ she thought. _If I haven’t found more food today I will give them this tonight._

Racer was hungry, and Petal held onto him tightly while he cried. He was feeling better after the radaway, and had more of an appetite than he had had of late. Vinnie wanted to cry but somehow she found it in herself to be tough. 

“Enough of that,” she said, sternly. “You need to stay here with the door barred. I will be back with food today, I promise.”

Vinnie tried not to cry when Petal pursed her lips and nodded. “Yes, Mommy. I’ll look after him.”

Once outside the bathroom door, she waited until she heard the mop in the door handle, tested it to make sure it was secure, and then headed into the tunnels, armed with the pipe and the 32 with its single shot.

Her luck was good, at first. She found the ticket booth and looked inside. She found a small toy car, which she pocketed for Racer, but the bigger find was an ancient DC map. She unfolded it carefully and quickly found Farragut station. They were close to the river. Maybe if they walked along the edge, she would be able to find their way around the ruins to Rivet City. 

She folded the map and tucked it in her pocket, then headed quietly into the area that used to be the train platform. There were no more mole rats, so she crept quietly down the steps to the tracks.

“Aggghhhhhh….”

The sound came from the tunnel.

Vinnie ducked down behind a news stand, listening. The sound came again, closer now. 

She watched the tunnel entrance carefully, waiting to see what emerged. 

“Aggggghhhh!!!” came the sound again, and a feral ghoul staggered out of the tunnel and onto the platform. It stood still for a moment, its wheezing breath echoing in the large room, and for an instant , Vinnie thought it was going to return from where it came. 

It didn’t move. It remained in that one spot for what seemed like forever. Her stomach growled. She hadn’t eaten in days, and her head was swimming slightly from radiation and hunger, but she clung to the news stand tightly, trying to stay quiet.

Her foot was growing numb, so she shifted slightly in an attempt to ease the pressure. She didn’t notice the toy car work its way out of her pocket with her movement until it fell onto the floor with a loud clatter.

The ghoul heard it too. It made a beeline straight for her. Her heart nearly exploded out of her chest in terror, and she decided to run. 

She headed up the stairs, the ghoul right behind her, but at the top she ran away from the metro entrance where the kids were, hoping to lead it further away. Instead she headed through the upper platform and down the other set of stairs.

She only made it about halfway down when the ghoul tackled her. They both rolled down the remaining stairs. Her head hit the ground with a sickening bloom of pain that burst behind her eyes, but she remained conscious. The ghoul landed several feet away, but despite the pain, she managed to pull the pipe out of her pants before it reached her. 

She didn’t have a chance to hit it, before it was on her again, and she screamed as she felt it’s putrid teeth sink into her thigh. She hit it with the pipe and it backed off, for a moment, then attacked her again. She shoved at it with her foot and it fell back. She sat up and swung at it again, hitting it in the arm. It fell and rolled, but reached for her foot and she felt it biting at her shin before dragging her underneath it. 

She screamed as it went for her throat. Somehow she got her arm up just in time, but it tore at the flesh of her arm and she saw blood dripping from its mouth. She knew then she was going to die. She would die and her babies would starve in that bathroom.

No. Fucking no. They would not. She swung the pipe again, and this time it connected, hitting the ghoul in the head.

It fell back. Vinnie watched it for a moment. It was still alive, and was getting to its feet. “NO!” she screamed, and stood quickly. She swung the pipe again and it connected. The ghoul fell back, its head caved in, but Vinnie didn’t stop. “NO! NONONO!” She screamed again and again as she beat the thing into the ground, and soon its head was a mess of fetid pulp at her feet, and she stood there panting.

When Vinnie calmed down, she realized she was bleeding in three places, and the bite on her arm was particularly bad. She tore a strip off the edge of her shirt and wrapped it around the wound, but decided the other two would have to stay open. She looked around, suddenly realizing that the noise may have attracted other ferals that may be in the area, but luckily there was no sound except her heavy breathing.

She had come so close to dying. So close to leaving her babies to starve in that bathroom. They couldn’t stay here. She had to take them out of this tunnel. Today.

She almost ran back to the bathroom. When she arrived, she called out for Petal to let her in. “Did you find any food, Mommy?” Racer asked. Vinnie shook her head and told them sharply to collect their things. It was time to go. 

They made their way outside, and the sudden blast of icy wind took Vinnie’s breath away. They had been in the metro for so long that winter had truly taken hold. She looked at the map briefly, orienting herself, then they headed together towards the river.

Vinnie stopped when they came in sight of the water. It had frozen solid. She smiled to herself, suddenly remembering the pond at their homestead when she was small, before the raiders came. It had the ruins of trees around one side of it, and it froze in the winter. Her mama had taken her out on the ice and would pull her along and together they would slide back and forth across the frozen pond, spinning and laughing, and then they went inside and mama would make her hot tea and they would sit by the fire.

She didn’t realize she was crying until she felt Petal tugging at her hand. The motion made pain shoot up her arm and she pulled her sleeve back to look. The feral’s bite was already festering, not two hours after it happened. She could see traces of red running up her arm.

She hoped she would last long enough to get them to Rivet City.

She smiled down at Petal. “I have an idea,” she said. 

She took the children by the hand, ignoring the pain in her arm, and headed towards the water. They were scared. She was scared too as they headed out onto the ice, but she pulled them along like her mother had once done, and they slid quickly together. Petal laughed suddenly, and Vinnie laughed too, and soon Racer was laughing along with them, earning his name as he skidded ahead of them both. 

They soon were in the middle of the river, headed south, when the shot came. It plinked into the ice near Vinnie, and her laughter died off. She looked to her left, and saw three super mutants, armed with rifles, and one of them was taking aim at them. 

They were in the open, exposed, so Vinnie grabbed Petal and shouted at Racer, and they headed right, towards the opposite shore. A second shot hit near her, sending up shards of ice, and then a third, so she pulled them faster. A moment later, they were on the shore, thankfully out of range of the mutants. 

The children were laughing. It seemed a game to them, and they had not noticed the shots. But she had no idea how she was going to get to Rivet City… or even if she could get in.

She stumbled, black spots in front of her eyes. The burning pain in her arm was worse than before, and she had no idea what to do, how to get her kids around the mutants, and where to go.

A gust of wind blew some clarity back into her head, so she rose, unsteadily, and looked around. The shore was rocky and barren, lined with concrete. In front of them stood a huge wall, a monolith of concrete. A sound drew her attention. It was the sound of a door opening. She looked over and saw a gate, guarded by a figure in power armour and holding a minigun. 

The armoured person stood straight as the door opened and out stepped a small group of people. The first one she noticed was a blond woman, also dressed in power armour, but helmetless. Next to her was another person in armour, and with them was a small boy who looked to be about Petal’s age. 

“Wait here, Arthur,” the blond woman said, and went over to speak with the person guarding the door. They chatted a moment, and then the blond woman and the boy headed off away from where Vinnie sat with the children. The guard removed his helmet, and spoke with the other figure. 

“Squire Maxson thinks he can kill a deathclaw as long as he has her with him.”

“If anyone can keep that kid safe, it’s her,” the other replied. They laughed together for a moment, then the first guard headed inside, leaving the new person to guard the entry.

Vinnie swayed on her feet, dizzy. She sat on the rocks and looked at the kids, and made her decision.

“Come here, my babies,” she said, and opened her pack. “I have a treat for you.”

They laughed when she pulled out the snack cakes, and watched them through a blurry haze as they ate them quickly, ravenous.

She held them in her lap for a moment when they were done, and sang a song she remembered her mother singing long ago, and then squeezed them as tightly as she was able.

“Remember the time we slid on the ice and had snack cakes after?” she asked.

Petal laughed. “Mommy, that time is now!” 

“I know, baby. But I wanted you to remember.”

“Ok Mommy,” Petal said, rolling her eyes.

“You’re silly, Mommy,” Racer said, stuffing the last cake in his mouth.

“I know, baby.” Vinnie said again. “Let’s go for a walk.”

It took everything she had to stand up, but she managed, and the three of them walked to the front gate and right up to the guard in power armour. 

“State your business, civilian,” he said.

“My children want to be squires. Like that boy who came out a little while ago.”

“I--I’m not authorized--”

“What’s going on here?” The blond woman had returned, the boy standing behind her, peeking out curiously at Petal and Racer.

The guard straightened. “I’m sorry, Sentinel. This woman says her children want to be squires.”

Sarah Lyons looked at the woman. She was barely upright, swaying on her feet. She was thin and pale, and had the mark of a slave collar imprinted on her neck. She ran her hand through her hair. They weren’t a charity. They couldn’t take any stray wastelanders they found into the Brotherhood. 

Arthur stepped out from behind Sarah and walked up to the little girl. “Hi, I’m Arthur,” he said.

“I’m Petal. This is my brother Racer.” 

“Are they going to be squires?” he asked Sarah.

“Please,” the woman whispered.

“I can’t take you. I can only take them,” Sarah said, relenting. 

“I know. I know.” said Vinnie. 

She got down on her knees and gathered her babies into her arms. She hugged them both and kissed them, and wiped the crumbs from their mouths with her fingers. “You go with this lady now. She’s gonna look after you. I have to go now. I’ll see you soon.”

“Mommy, where are you going?” cried Petal.

“I’m not going far,” Vinnie lied. “I’ll see you soon.”

She took their hands and brought them to the blond woman. 

“Being a squire is fun,” Arthur said, and Racer smiled at him, already enthralled by the older boy.

“Alright, let’s get everyone in,” Sarah said. The gate opened and the children disappeared inside. Sarah turned and looked at Vinnie for a moment, then she was gone too, the gates closing behind her with a bang.

Vinnie walked away. She walked back down to the river and along the shore until she was past the building, and walked until she could go no further. She sat on the rocks and looked over at the sun setting behind the ruins of DC. Her tears were gone. Her babies were safe, and that was all that mattered. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the 32 with it’s single shot still inside, resting it in her lap as the sun disappeared behind the horizon.


End file.
